Internet connectivity is desirable for some users at times. To address the desire to have Internet connectivity, some consumers purchase smartphones or other devices that can be configured to communicate with wide area networks (“WANs”) such as cellular networks, WIMAX networks, or the like. Many modern mobile telephones are Internet-capable and/or may be connected at almost all times.
An emerging sector of the computing device space is tablet computers. Tablet computers are generally sold in two configurations. One popular configuration is a WI-FI enabled version that connects to the Internet via personal and/or local networks such as WI-FI networks or hotspots. A second popular configuration is a WI-FI and WAN enabled version that can connect to the Internet via personal networks, local networks, and/or WAN networks such as cellular networks, or the like. WAN-capable tablet computers are sometimes sold with an embedded transceiver that supports the WAN communications, so there typically is no way to retrofit a WI-FI-only device with WAN connectivity.
Many of tablet computers existing today and/or expected to be sold over the next few years are WI-FI capable, but are not WAN capable. Thus, many tablet computers do not have Internet access unless within range of a WI-FI hotspot or other access point. To remedy this deficiency, these devices must either be coupled to an Internet-capable device (e.g., connected to a smartphone via tethering), or connected to a WI-FI access point. Thus, while WI-FI-only versions of tablet computers often are cheaper than their WAN-enabled counterparts, these devices may lack practical access to the Internet.
Furthermore, even devices that are Internet enabled may not have access to a WAN at some particular time. For example, the devices may be carried into an area that is not covered by a particular carrier, a user's account may be locked for various purposes, or preferences or settings may dictate that network connectivity is unavailable at a particular time. For non-WAN-enabled devices, users may not have any practical way to obtain Internet connectivity without locating a WI-FI network that the user is entitled to use.